Sunset
by EternalAether
Summary: The future children of Fairy Tail get transported back in time by a mysterious otherworldly force. Can they now change the past to prevent the dark future they hail from?
1. A Gap in Time

**Dear readers – to anyone who read my previous story, Children of Fate, this is somewhat of an updated version of that; I wasn't at all happy with where it was going and decided to discontinue it. Sorry. Hopefully this will be a lot better, and if you're a new reader, I hope you enjoy what is kind-of-but-not-really my first ever Fanfiction. (-;**

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 **Chapter 1 – A gap in time**

Will woke with a start. One minute ago, he had been fighting demons under a blackened sky, and yet now the gorgeous summer sun shone down on him and illuminated the vibrant forest surrounding him. Cautiously, he stood up, and realised that his white armour was no longer dented and scratched, and instead reflected the sunlight, casting rainbows on the ground around him. His hair, which was blonde with a shock of red running down the center, was no longer bloody and matted, and most peculiarly of all, he felt magic power running through his veins, having been almost drained of energy just a short time ago.

Being the strong and confident teen that he was, he immediately set out to find the cause of his rejuvenation and change of scenery; he also knew in the back of his mind that he must also find his friends, who may or may not have also been removed from their losing battle. Will Fernandez had always been the natural leader in his team, always standing up for those weaker than him (which was pretty much anyone and everyone), but nothing could have prepared him for the heart-wrenching scene he laid hi crystal blue eyes upon next.

Upon rising to the top of a small hill, he saw below him none other than his once formidable guild, in all its glory. Erza was shouting at Natsu and Gray for fighting one another whilst Lucy giggled nearby and Juvia cheered for Gray from afar. It seemed like they were having some kind of barbecue that day, as everyone was outside, causing havoc as usual. Mira chatted with Laxus and the Thunder Legion near to the buffet, and Wendy played with Asuna amongst some flowers. All of them were having a great time, laughing, singing and making merriment.

A tear rolled down the usually stoic Will's cheek. "How is this possible?" he whispered under his breath. "They all died." Without warning his feet started moving on their own accord, taking him down the side of the hill at a quickening pace to where the wizards were partying down below. Gradually, the noise died down as more of them noticed the intruder.

"Who are you?" someone asked loudly, in a voice that sounded drunk. Will could barely speak from the shock of it all. He was probably more powerful than anyone here, and yet he practically quailed at the sight of them.

"My name is Will," he finally managed. "What…what year is this?" he spat out with a sudden haste.

"It is the year X792. Now are you quite alright?" asked Erza, now the guildmaster of Fairy Tail. Hearing this nearly makes Will faint, but he holds his nerve long enough to speak again.

"I…see...I don't know how to say this other than just putting it bluntly. Erza, or should I say mother, I am from the year X722, and although I don't know how or why I arrived here, I shall say that it is good to be home." A moment of silence followed this speech, but it was understandably short lived. And so the tirade of questions began…

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 **Good? Not good? To be honest, I don't know what I'm doing with Fanfiction but if you enjoyed this, great! Expect more soon! (-;**


	2. Blades

**Chapter 2 is here! Enjoy! (-;**

 **Chapter 2 – Blades**

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Having finally quietened down the confused mob of wizards, Will finally rose to speak. "I'm sure you must all be confused, and suspicious at that. Mother, you in particular will probably have some serious questions to put forward. But first I must say this. In fifteen years' time, Zeref will rise and Fiore will fall. Only a fraction of the population will survive. This is the world I grew up in. I can assure you I speak the truth, although for me to be standing here with you seems like a miracle to even myself. The last thing I remember before my awakening here was fighting off a horde of demons rampaging through Magnolia. The odds were against us, and I don't think we would have survived if not for whatever magic brought us into the past. That is, assuming my companions also shared my fate."

It was at this point through Will's lecture (he had a habit of rambling) that he noticed that his mother, Erza Scarlet, had not said a word since her initial speaking to him. "Mother… or should I call you Erza, I'm not quite sure what your preference would be… are you alright?" he inquired. Even Natsu stayed silent to see her reaction.

Her crimson eyes flew open. "If you are really of my blood," started the fairy queen, "then you must prove it to me on the battlefield. Only then will I accept your claim."

Will's lips grew into a smile. She wasn't any different from the strong mother he knew. "Very well then," he said after a tense pause for the other wizards, who still were frozen with baited breath. Erza motioned for the other wizards to back off, which they did without complaint, muttering amongst themselves, some nervous, some confrontational.

"Let us begin," Erza said.

Swiftly, Erza drew her sword whilst Will used similar magic to draw two twin daggers out of thin air. There were no more words to be said now. This battle would be intense. With blinding speed, Will flew at Erza and they clashed blades, the deafening clang created by it shaking the souls of the watching wizards. Even Laxus was keen to get as far away from the two wizards as possible, whilst still being able to watch of course.

They struck and parried and swung and blocked at an immeasurable speed for several seconds, before leaping back and both requipping simultaneously fast; Erza into her Heaven's Wheel armour, and Will into a light armour fitted with wings that shone with all the colours in the rainbow: Meteor Armour. He spun, sending off bombs of light that exploded around Erza, but she was able to block them with her many swords. She went to attacking using all of her blades, but he zoomed straight up into the air, causing all the swords to miss and instead decapitate some nearby unfortunate trees.

From on high, he sent hundreds of daggers resembling meteors showering down on Erza below; some hit their mark and appeared to take their toll, but nonetheless she requipped again into flight armour to pursue him in the sky. From here, an aerial battle begun, with explosive waves of energy erupting from them every time they clashed.

It was then that the nature of the battle changed. It was clear they were equal in magical power, so it seemed they had decided to base it on raw power alone. Both drew back, still midair, and began to culminate magical power around them. Dozens of weapons of all types appeared around Erza, whilst Will held his hand to the sky, drew a magic circle and started some kind of incantation.

Down below, Juvia saw what they were doing quite clearly and put into practice a spell which she had just learnt. Drawing water from the nearby river, she created a massive water bubble around the guild, to prevent destruction. The guild might survive the week that way, which was a rare occurrence. Gray watched from afar, secretly proud of how far the rain woman had come.

It was not a moment too soon, as that was when the two masters up above let loose, creating a huge explosion that lit up the sky with brilliant colours. A collective gasp rose from the Fairy Tail wizards below as debris began to fall, mostly made up of completely destroyed weaponry. They were all caught in the water bubble before disappearing in a shower of light. Two more things landed on the water bubble and instead of disappearing, were lowered gently down by the water before being dropped unceremoniously; Juvia was still only just getting used to the spell. Natsu and Gray rushed forward and caught the near-unconscious bodies of Will and Erza as they fell, and noticed that they each wore uncharacteristic grins on their faces.

"You truly are my son," whispered Erza as she was lowered down to the grass by a strangely quiet Natsu. "Don't worry, we'll find your friends and prevent this disaster. I don't know much about it, but I promise to be here for you, even if your true mother cannot. I'll find your father as well; I already know who he is by your magic. I never would have guessed that he could have a romantic side, though." She chuckled at this, then drifted off to a peaceful slumber. Will's only response was a single tear running down his cheek, noticed only by Wendy as she went to heal them.

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 **Hope you liked this! I'll make the chapters longer once I get into the swing of things. (-;**


	3. Downpour

**Here it is, Chapter 3 at last! (-;**

 **Chapter 3 – Downpour**

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The sun rose slowly over the horizon, lighting up the world in a way that Will hadn't seen for years. He stared almost directly at it for a good minute, lost in wonder before spots began to dance in front of his vision and he was forced to look away. He was in a small room that looked to be the infirmary, and glanced across said room to see Erza slumbering in a similar bed to his own.

The knight mage rose from the bed, conscious of the healing magic still flowing through his veins, and requipped into new clothes. Erza stirred at this, opened her eyes and said a quiet "good morning." How she was able to act so naturally around him after knowing him to be her son for only an hour the day before was beyond him. Sure, they were equal in power; their battle proved that; but she certainly had the stronger force of will.

He went to leave the door when it flung open, almost hitting him. Natsu burst into the room in all of his cacophonous energy and went straight to Erza, seemingly worried about her. "Hey, Erza! Wake up!" He began to shake her awake, to which she punched him in the gut, still only half-conscious. Natsu noticed Will only after being attacked by Erza.

"Good to see you up, Windowsill! It'll be me fighting you next, just to warn you. I might not be able to beat Erza, but I can't lose to her son as well!" Will didn't attempt to correct his drastic mess-up regarding his name, figuring he would get it eventually, just as Nash and Katy did back in the future.

"Oh yeah!" Natsu exclaimed suddenly, having gone back to Erza's side. Gray and Lucy walked in at this point, and Will could also see Juvia peering in from behind the door. "Jellal came by, said he had to talk to Erza. Mira said he was probably your dad, for some reason. Not sure why though," said Natsu in a rush.

"Idiot," muttered Gray. Will had to agree, though he didn't voice my opinion. _Isn't it obvious?_ thought the knight mage to himself. Deciding to stop him before he reached the point of total confusion, Will spoke up on the matter. "Yes, Natsu, I am the son of Jellal, and I will hopefully be born in four years' time. It'll be weird to meet my child self, if that is how this future thing works. I think that I'd like to figure out what became of my friends before figuring out how the time travel actually works, though. I vowed to protect them when I became guildmaster, and that is what I shall continue to do. I won't pretend that some of them aren't stronger than me, however."

"I see," Erza said, sitting up in her bed. Jellal walked in just then, to which Erza bluntly stated, "Meet our child, Jellal." He looked a little queasy at this, but chose to ask for an explanation rather than just fainting there and then. "Allow me to explain," Erza said.

"This here is Will, our child from the future. He was mysteriously transported to yesterday from 20 years in the future, and has no idea why. I have no doubt he is my blood, though; I fought him yesterday and our magic matched one another's uncannily. I hope this is not too shocking for you."

Jellal seemed to regain his composure slightly. "It's… nice to meet you, Will. My name is… no wait, you know that already. I'm sorry; I just don't know how to address you… or the fact that you are the child of Erza and me. It does answer a few questions I had, however."

"What do you mean?" questioned Will, glad his father reacted relatively positively to the revelation. "Well," Jellal began, "I came to Fairy Tail to inform and possibly warn about an unusual phenomenon that seems to be going on throughout Fiore."

"Go on," said Will, already guessing what he might be talking about, hiding his excitement behind a serious face.

"Everywhere around the continent, I have been picking up strange readings of a magic resembling Ultear's Arc of Time. Hearing of your story, I guess they must be other people from the future, especially since one of the readings I picked up on came from here. Do you know why you travelled back in time?" Jellal said.

"I'm afraid I don't; in fact, I was in battle when it happened, or at least, that's the last thing I remember," Will stated disappointedly. "I do hope it's my friends, though. I don't know what I'd do without them."

"Aww isn't that sweet," came a voice from the door. A girl about the same as Will strode into the room with both confidence and grace. Her hair was deep purple, as was her long, flowing dress that reached her ankles. A golden necklace with the Fairy Tail emblem on it hung from her neck, and her golden eyes seemed to pierce through whoever she looked at.

"Katy!" exclaimed Will. "Is it really you? Are you from the year X722?"

"Slow down, I've only just got here!" she said. "But yes, I am the Katy you know and adore! Seen anyone else? I came straight here after my awakening, so I haven't really searched much."

"Arrrrrgh!" shouted Natsu after having stayed quiet for a record length of time. "This whole time-travel crap is messing with my head! I really need some fire and time to cool off!"

"Chill out, man! This is important stuff," reasoned Gray in a confrontational tone.

"I don't really get it either, but I assure you, you'll want to hear this," cut in Katy massively. "You are my father, after all!"

"What?" Natsu asked quietly. But the quiet was short-lived. "WHAAAAAAT?!"

"Calm down, you're more hot-headed than my brother!"

"You have a BROTHER?!"

"In hindsight, I shouldn't have mentioned that," finished Katy, obviously used to Natsu's unreasonableness. Natsu was at this point punched for the second time by Erza, and shut his mouth to allow her to explain.

"And as for my mother," Katy started, "I might as well come out and say it: Lucy, you are my mother, or at least you will be."

Lucy didn't react loudly as Natsu did, instead turning a deep red and looking tentatively at Natsu. He didn't say a word, just took her hand and dragged her swiftly out of the room. Will and Gray went to go after them, but Katy held out a hand to stop them.

"They'll need time to discuss this, as will all of the Fairy Tail wizards when they find out who their future partners and children will be, some more than others. We can't all have parents as strong as Erza and Jellal," said Katy with a hint of sarcasm.

Will sighed. A lot of people were in for a shock, assuming his entire future guild had travelled back into the past. None of the current members remained in the guild in the future, either as victims of the cataclysm or because they went to the front lines to fight Zeref, so hopefully nobody would have to meet their future selves, but still, it would be a pain to say the least.

Meanwhile, in the north of Fiore, a storm was raging. Rain lashed down on a small village of cultists, all devoted to Zeref, who hid in the mountains. A 17-year old boy walked alone through the village, seemingly unaffected by the rain. His brown hair stood spiked up, and no raindrops ran down his face or dampened his plain blue and white clothing. The most noticeable feature of the boy, however, was the black marks running up his arms and wrapping around his face, encircling one of his bright blue eyes. The marks pulsed and shimmered in the rain, and he walked in an almost zombie-like state.

Slowly, he extended one arm in front of him, and a magic circle the colour of oil-tainted water appeared before him. The rain instantly worsened, and all of the buildings in the village collapsed in on themselves. The villagers, all of whom wore cloaks with black magic runes on them, began clutching at their throats amidst the rubble of the houses, and began to collapse one by one, having been drowned in the immeasurably torrential rain. Soon, none of them were left standing other than the caster of the spell.

A voice that was half-human and half-monstrous sounded from the boy's mouth. "The cataclysm of the future… it will occur thanks to selfish human desire and want of destruction. I shall exterminate them all. So says the storm demon slayer. Prepare yourself, Fiore!"

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 **Hope you enjoyed that one, it was great fun to write! See you next time! (-;**


	4. Flowers

**Hope you've been enjoying my story so far! If anyone has any suggestions, feel free to review! (-;**

 **Chapter 4 – Flowers**

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It had been two days since Will's arrival, and he and Katy had already begun to settle in. Katy was given a room in Fairy Hills, whereas Will slept in a room in the guild, seeing as he was technically a guildmaster. To the great annoyance of all of the wizards in the guild, neither time-traveller would reveal any information about the other future children that were supposedly out there somewhere. Will had said that doing so may get peoples' hopes up only for them to be disappointed if it turned out that not all of the future Fairy Tail members travelled back in time. What they had revealed, however, was that in the future, Fairy Tail was the only remaining guild in Fiore, meaning that there were children from other guilds in it. He said that there were thirty-three members including himself and Katy, last he checked. To prevent widespread confusion if they started to appear, all of the guilds in the country were informed the previous evening of the situation, as were the members of Fairy Tail. Crime Sorciere also found out after they chose to spend the night at the guild, and everyone took it surprisingly well considering their guild's history.

Juvia was not going to stand for it, however. _What if Gray-sama and I were to have a child in the future?_ she mused. And so she resolved to do everything in her power to find out everything she could about these future children. Not that any new ones had turned up since yesterday, though. She wandered through Magnolia with thoughts of forcing the information out of Will or Katy, not really paying attention to where she was going.

It happened that she chanced upon a small café somewhere towards the edge of the town, beautifully decorated with all sorts of exotic-looking flowers. She decided to go in for a quick coffee, to keep her aquatic body hydrated. Behind the counter, a woman with flowing pink hair adorned with roses stood with her brow shrouded by a large bulbous hat that matched her flower-shaped dress.

Juvia recognised the woman from the Grand Magic Games banquet as Cosmos, once an executioner that had fought Wendy and very nearly won. She turned to leave, but it was too late. The café was deserted, to make things worse.

"You're the Rain Woman, aren't you? Do you like my café? I so enjoy this peaceful life away from that dingy dungeon. It's strange, I never noticed how beautiful the world of the living was until I stopped my life of killing," she said reminiscently. Juvia was lost for words, feeling very awkward around her former foe. Realising leaving may make the powerful plant mage, she held her resolve and spoke up.

"Hello… Cosmos, was it? My name is Juvia; I discarded the Rain Woman title a long time ago when my beloved lit up my world and I saw the light of the sun for the first time. Could I… get a coffee to go please?"

"Yes you may, but Juvia, sit awhile, my flytraps are the only things that bite, and they're nowhere near as monstrous as they used to be. Still just as beautiful, though. How's Wendy doing?"

Juvia sat down, some of the tension gone from her shoulders, and answered. "Wendy's doing very well, and stronger than ever. We all are; it's starting to feel like a guild again. Although now we seem to be on the verge of a new adventure, since these children from the future have started popping up," she finished, silencing herself before she revealed too much to the woman who may still have feelings of resentment towards the guild.

"Oh yes?" She didn't seem too fazed by it, obviously used to Fairy Tail's regular misadventures. "I may actually be able to help you find one of them, then. Kama contacted me, asking me to investigate this huge rainstorm in the northern mountains that popped up out of nowhere. They don't seem to realise I'm retired! Anyhow, I bet it's one of the future children's doing, since you're the only mage in the country capable of pulling something like that off, and that storm did not sound natural based on what I heard from the Hungry Wolf Knights."

Juvia's eyes widened; if they were a water mage, could they possibly one of her own children? One of her and _Gray-sama's_ children?! She almost danced around in excitement, then realised she was not in her room, alone, late at night when no one could witness her fangirling and writing long, steamy fanfictions about her and Gray. She calmed down.

"Would you like me to accompany you, in that case?" Juvia asked.

Cosmos nodded and smiled. "The company will be nice, and honestly, I was thinking of asking to join your guild anyway. I've always admired you guys in Fairy Tail, which is probably why I set up shop in Magnolia a few months back. We can leave tomorrow morning, if that's okay with you."

"Sure," Juvia said with a smile. Perhaps she wasn't as scary as Wendy had said. She chose not to mention that just now.

"Beautiful!" Cosmos said as Juvia left the café, going over to tend to her lovely yet deadly plants.

That evening passed by excruciatingly slowly. Juvia said goodbye to her Gray-sama about a million times, but only told him that she was to go on a solo job, feeling that Cosmos may dislike having more company. Will asked her to look out for any of his friends on her job, to which she agreed enthusiastically. Hopefully she'd come back with not only a new guild mate, but also with someone who proved that Gray would (eventually) return her feelings.

She packed furiously quickly, then laid in bed for hours into the late hours of the evening in nervous anticipation of tomorrow. It was like she was a child on Christmas Eve; she always knew that having children would be one of her greatest accomplishments, but the thought of having a mini-Gray-sama to call her own the next day practically sent her over the edge. She closed her eyes, dreaming blissfully about holidays to icy mountains and icy lakes with a family she could call her own.

Two figures ran across the drenched ground in the center of a now ruined village, casting their eyes forward so as not to see the bodies that lay among the wrecked buildings. They were twins, both with bright blue hair and friendly –looking faces. One was a boy, and he wore a black sleeveless top and brown shorts, not even shivering from the cold. The other was a girl, and wore similarly light clothing, consisting of a black vest and a light-blue skirt.

In the boy's hand was a beautifully ornate bow made entirely of ice, which was about as tall as he was. The girl carried a blade, also made of ice, that was similarly huge and decorated. They ran through the puddles, wearing steely expressions, towards the storm in the distance that was heading towards yet another village. Through their minds flashed thoughts of the boy that was the cause of all this, possessed by the demon inside him that was both his greatest strength and his greatest weakness. Said demon would either have to be brought under control or killed along with their brother. If that was the only way, then it would have to be done.

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 **Yeah, so Cosmos is now going to be in this, since I always thought her magic had great potential and she kind of reminds me of Juvia from her Phantom Lord days. See you next time! (-;**


	5. Demon Queen vs Demon Slayer

**Thanks to everyone who's followed the story up until this point! If anyone has any suggestions on how I can improve, I'm all ears! By the way, I don't own Fairy Tail, unfortunately. (Not sure if I needed to be putting that, better safe than sorry) (-;**

 **Chapter 5 – Demon Queen vs. Demon Slayer**

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Juvia met up with Cosmos in the early hours of the morning, and they boarded the train heading north to their destination. The plant mage had received another message from the kingdom, telling her to inform them if the magic council need get involved. It was obvious to the two girls that this was somewhat of a big deal. They chatted easily enough on the train ride, getting to know each other quite well, dark pasts and everything. Cosmos was surprised to learn of their conquest over Tartaros; apparently it had been covered up quite well by the council.

"So you're from Phantom, right? Do you still keep in touch with the fire mage from the element four?" Cosmos asked after a few minutes of silence between them.

"Not really, why do you ask?"

"Well, I took one of his teaching classes to learn how to counter my weakness, fire, and I've kind of… you know, liked him ever since. His fighting style is just so beautiful, I could barely think straight when we sparred."

Juvia's smile grew into an evil grin that rivalled that of Mirajane. "So you're saying you think he's the one, do you? That you'll eventually get him to love you, then get married and have 33 babies?!" Juvia began to swoon, obviously not thinking of Totomaru anymore. Cosmos didn't attempt to intervene as the water mage began to fantasise of her prince, dancing around with glee in her seat and remaining completely oblivious to her surroundings and onlookers. Eventually, she calmed down, righted herself and attempted to act dignified despite the sniggering from her fellow passengers.

"Right then," she began, "In any case, you should tell him how you feel."

"I don't know…" Cosmos said quietly. "I'm just the girl obsessed with carnivorous plants… and my past is hardly beautiful either! My magic kills people, what if I was to hurt him?!" The ex-executioner looked close to tears.

Juvia's expression changed to one of determination. "Don't you dare give up on your true love! My prince brought light into my life of darkness, so don' give up on yours!" She smiled. "There's everything to like about you, and as long as you don't touch my Gray-sama, Juvia has got your back! Oh, look. We're at our destination! Let's go and do what we do best: fight for love!"

Cosmos's only response was a smile then a strained grunt as the water mage pulled her to her feet and almost dragged her off the train, obviously eager to find her potential child. Her expression softened. Maybe being a wizard wasn't all about fighting, after all.

Just a few miles away, a very different scene was playing out. The now-possessed storm demon slayer began to culminate magic energy, preparing to intensify the rain against his opponents. His pursuers had finally caught up to him; they were Rin and Sylvia, both siblings of his and also both amazing ice wizards. But even as the slayer's inner self struggled, the demon in his mind forced him to fight them.

He spoke in a voice that was reminiscent of the demon Lullaby to the twins. "Water shall triumph over ice today, mark my words! You cannot stop me!"

Rin shouted through the storm in an attempt to reach his brother. "JAY! Listen to me, we're your family! Don't you remember the guild? Your friends? Hear me, please!"

Sylvia looked close to tears, although it was hard to tell in the wet weather. Before he was able to cast the spell, she shut her eyes and struck, terrified of hurting her big brother but also determined to prevent more loss of life. Her sword of ice passed straight through his water body, but it had done the trick, the intense coldness of the weapon freezing him for a split second and allowing Rin to fire a hail of frozen arrows at him, encasing him in ice. Jay screamed as the rain around him froze, although the storm did not stop.

A few seconds passed with no response from their frozen brother, but they knew better than to underestimate him. Sure enough, the ice shattered and a giant wave of water appeared out of nowhere, surrounding the storm mage. The twins had no time to react as they were consumed by the wave, thrown against the rocks at the side of the mountain path and plunged into unconsciousness. The demon brought one arm up to bring about a spell to finish them off, but then… CRASH!

A beam of black light smashed into Jay's side, throwing him and the demon inside a clear twenty meters before they finally slammed against a boulder with a sickening crunch. He looked up to see a girl of seventeen hovering not far from him, with magic radiating from her entire being.

Her seemingly once sky-blue dress was stained purple and black, and her dainty frame was embellished by demonic scales on her hands and feet. Her beautiful face and blonde hair was similarly corrupted by a long scar, garish black makeup and messy red streaks in her hair. Her eyes bore an expression containing both sadness and hatred, whilst her hands glowed with a both gorgeous and terrifying resonance.

Jay rose from the boulder. "Ellie!" he shouted in a voice that sounded more human than before, filled with desperation and fear. It was clear to the daughter of Mirajane that Jay was still alive in there, and he could still be saved. They stared at one another for a few seconds then simultaneously sprang at one another, both shouting a battle cry as they clashed in a great explosion.

The demon slayer collected the rain together, forming thousands of aquatic blades surrounding Ellie. As they shot inward towards her, she drew a black magic circle and shouted to the wind, "evil radiance!" A wave of purple energy exploded outwards, vaporising the swords, but Jay was not finished yet. He fired one water slicer after another, shooting from all directions as he moved at blinding speeds thanks to the heavy rain. The she-demon blocked each shot with increasing tiredness, painfully aware of how he had beaten her every time they sparred in the past. This went on seemingly indefinitely, with her unable to cast any spells; she had to use all her speed just to block each hit.

Eventually she fell, uttering a short "I'm sorry" as her body hit the sodden ground. "This is the end!" cackled the demon, now almost done with the takeover of Jay. He went to deal the final slice to her throat, but found himself unable to move. "What sorcery is this?! Even that pitiful weakling Jay could always beat you before, and my powers have exponentially buffed his own!"

It was then he realised that he had been bound by vines to the ground, and was unable to react quickly enough as the flower under his feet swallowed him whole. Cosmos smirked. "Beautiful," she whispered. "I leave the rest to you, Rain Woman."

Juvia put all of her power into the next strike, leaping from an above boulder and hitting him with a rain-boosted water jigsaw before he could escape the plant. The spell sliced the demon right out of him before cutting it to pieces; Jay's aquatic body made him immune but once the demon was thrown from it, the beast was an easy target. "HOW DARE YOU! I SHALL… KILL… you… all…" The demon's roar grew into a whisper as it was finally removed from existence.

Cosmos ran over to Juvia and expectantly gave her a massive hug. "That was amazing, Juvia, too beautiful to describe! And look, he's finally waking up!" The water mage looked to the demons slayer on the ground, who was slowly opening his crystal blue eyes.

"Oh God… what have I done?" he said ruefully before looking up and seeing the two wizards left standing. His eyes widened even further. "Mother!? I never thought I'd see you again! I guess my defeat makes sense now; I could never beat you at water magic, not even as a demon slayer. Oh! But what of my friends?" He moved to get up, but Juvia stopped him hastily. To Cosmos's surprise, she didn't swoon or go into fanatical fangirling about Gray; she simply laid him back down and hugged him, just glad for his safety.

Releasing him once again, she rose to survey the carnage, and any potential casualties, to which there were thankfully none. Rin and Sylvia had begun to rise, and Ellie's chest rose and fell with no hindrance. The magic finally left her body, and she lost all of the corruptions that had ruined her perfect beauty before. Despite being injured and drenched, she looked like a beautiful bride as she rose and walked over with the twins to Jay's side.

The twins hugged Juvia, and to prevent her confusion, Ellie explained that they were also her children from the future. At this point, the inner crazy in Juvia broke free of its suppression. "All of you are the children of Juvia and Gray-sama?! Yes! Now he'll _have_ to love me, I can't wait to get back to Magnolia and have thirty-three babies!"

Ellie and Jay sighed, happy that things were actually getting back to normal. Cosmos didn't know what she'd tell the kingdom about the destroyed cultist villages they'd seen on the way, but for now she was just happy to see a family reunited.

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 **I hope you enjoyed this, it was very fun to write even though I kind of suck at fight scenes! See you next time! (-;**


	6. Sunlit Promise

**The next chapter is here! I don't own Fairy Tail, if I did, it would have a lot more romance! (-;**

 **Chapter 6 – Sunlit promise**

Cosmos and Ellie decided to sit apart from the newly reunited family on the train ride back, to avoid the massive scene they were all causing. The plant mage looked back over her seat to see Rin challenging Jay to a rematch, Juvia furiously writing something that was probably some kind of fanfiction and Sylvia flirting with some random guy on the seat across from her; they were certainly an… eccentric family, to say the least.

Ellie was staring out of the window, captivated by the colours outside, which she said were not at all present in the future. The greenery seen every day by someone in this time were a brand new novelty to the nicknamed 'demon queen'. "I wonder," the girl said at last, "if the others will have trouble getting back to the guild. The trains were all but destroyed in the future, so many I imagine would not think to use them. Tell me Cosmos, have you had many new arrivals at Fairy Tail?"

"Well," Cosmos began hesitantly, "I'm not actually a member of Fairy Tail yet, but Juvia said that only two had arrived upon her leaving. I find it rather beautiful, how only that guild of champions was able to survive in the future. It makes them all the more worthy to be the conquerors of the Hungry Wolf Knights."

"I see. So you would like to joint Fairy Tail?" Ellie asked.

"Yes, but I don't know if they'll accept me, after all I did try to harm them greatly one time. My past is… not so beautiful, in hindsight."

"Nonsense, we wouldn't have freed Jay or even survived that battle without you. You're welcome in _our_ Fairy Tail anytime. In fact…" She turned her head. "Jay, get over here!"

The demon slayer broke free of his fight with Rin and rushed over; although he was the stronger mage, he still wasn't eager to get on Ellie's bad side. "Make this girl a member of Fairy Tail at once, if you please."

Cosmos's eyes widened. "Um… I'm not sure you can just do that… it's fine if they don't accept me, really!"

"Nonsense!" Ellie said for the second time. Their other three comrades wandered over to see what was going on. "Jay here is Will's second in command, perfectly capable of allowing someone into the guild. _Isn't that right,_ " she said threateningly.

"Given the circumstances, I'm not sure I…" Jay began, but he was soon cut off.

"Shut up and do it or I'll set my sister on you, whenever we find her!" This seemed to make the demon slayer and his two siblings freeze in terror, much to the confusion of Juvia and Cosmos.

"Alright then, but you get to explain this to Erza, who I assume is the guild master at present." And thus, Cosmos gained a bright green guild mark, placed unusually on the right-hand side of her neck. The group were nearing Magnolia, at which point Juvia realised that she still didn't know how she'd introduce their children to Gray upon their arrival. Grabbing her notepad and three children, she rushed back over to her seat to plan out their entrance together. Ellie and Cosmos looked at one another, then burst out into giggles over their antics.

"Welcome to the guild, and may you bring peace and happiness to the land," the demon queen said with a smile.

* * *

Meanwhile, all was not right in the world of Lucy and Natsu. The celestial mage had been running around town trying to find the dragon slayer ever since he bolted when Katy revealed that they were her parents, and that she had a brother. Mira and Gray had both told her to leave him be, but not even happy knew where he was, making her begin to seriously worry. He'd been gone for two days, and it was growing dark as Lucy ran through the streets for the hundredth time that day. He hadn't been at his house, the guild or any of his favourite restaurants the whole time, and Wendy had been unable to sniff him out.

Just as she was beginning to lose hope, she caught a glimpse of strawberry-pink hair about a hundred meters down the street. She broke out into a sprint, but when she reached where she had been looking, Natsu was once again gone.

"This is hopeless! Why is he avoiding me? Is it that he would find being with me a bad thing?" Lucy was close to tears; she had never really addressed it before, but she really did love Natsu; she just never thought of it as a romantic kind of love. That is, until now. Her heart had throbbed when Katy revealed all, and that was the moment she realised her true feelings.

Lucy then had an idea. It was so obvious, how could she have missed it before? "Open, gate of the twins! Gemini!" The two mischief makers appeared before her in a plume of blue and white smoke.

"Piri-piri! How can we help you, Miss Lucy?"

"I'd like you to transform into Natsu and tell me where he is, please."

"Piri-piri!" The spirits disappeared into smoke once more, emerging as a complete replica of her hot-tempered friend. Gemini smiled at her, then suddenly gasped and blushed. "Natsu… is atop the hill overlooking the guild. Please hurry, Miss Lucy!" With that, the spirits disappeared leaving Lucy confused and a bit worried. What could Natsu be thinking by going up there? She ran once again, scared for her friend and, supposedly, future lover.

Five minutes later, the celestial mage had finally scaled the hill, and sure enough, Natsu was standing, basking in the sunset glow. The area had a mystical feel about it, having a perfect view of the colour splattering the sky like the fire dragon's brilliant flame. Natsu turned around with a look in his eyes that Lucy had never seen before. It was eminently warm and heartfelt, yet at the same time determined and passionate.

"Lucy," she spoke at last. Said mage jumped at the sudden noise that broke the silence they had been stuck in before.

"Y… yes? Are… you okay?"

"You don't have to be afraid, I was just trying to do things properly!" he said, sounding innocent and carefree as always.

Lucy was taken aback. "Properly?" she asked. She gave him a puzzled look, but it quickly turned to one of great surprise as he knelt on one knee before her. "This isn't some kind of joke, is it? Or you're just being a perv, and trying to look up my skirt! You… you can't possibly be…" She trailed off, unable to move out of fear and excitement.

"Lucy. I know how you feel about me, heck, I've been smelling it for months now! Call me an animal, but dragon slayers can smell these things when the feelings are strong enough. And so, as I said, I wanted to do this properly. Now we have kids, I don't think it would be right not to do this, and who else was it going to be but you, anyway? The reason I've been gone so long was so I could get my hands on this thing, but I finally found one that suited you! So Luce, will you accept this?"

The ring he brought out of his pocket could have had a cockroach on it for all she cared; she held out her hand and allowed him to put it on her ring finger without saying a word. "You already know this Natsu, but I hope it will still mean something when I say that I love you!"

"Aww, don't cry, Lucy! I love you too, so don't cry! You'll never have to cry again!"

He rose from the ground, and with any words worth saying already said and done, wordlessly brought their lips together in a long-awaited kiss, illuminated by the setting sun behind them. In that moment, Lucy thought she a sarcastic "about time" in her head, but ignored it as she continued to kiss her fiancé.

From within the Celestial Spirit World, Aquarius looked on with a smile on her face. Her little girl had finally grown up. She caught herself welling up, and quickly wiped away the tears, looking away from the couple. "It's not like I care about her," said Aquarius adamantly to herself. Somehow though, she still had a smile painting her face.

* * *

 **I really hope you enjo** **yed this! In the next chapter, Gray reacts to his new family, so stay tuned! See you then! (-;**


	7. Moonlight

**Here's the next chapter for you! Enjoy! (-;**

 **Chapter 7 – Moonlight**

* * *

It was around 9 in the evening when the train finally pulled into the station. The moon looked over the six wizards as they made their way with excitement and anticipation to the gates of a now quiet Fairy Tail, lighting their path in a luminous grey-blue glow. As they opened the doors, they were met with an understandably near-deserted guild. Only Will, Erza and Mirajane remained, and much to Juvia's disappointed, her beloved ice mage was nowhere to be seen.

"Welcome back," Erza said cheerfully. I see you've brought some new faces along with you, welcome to the Fairy Tail of the past."

Mirajane gasped. "Aren't you… that girl from Crocus? The executioner?!"

"Yes, and I apologise for my actions from before. My name is Cosmos; I was let into the guild by Jay and Ellie here, I hope it's alright…"

Will spoke up. "I was wondering when you'd show up. You become quite the fearsome force of the guild in the future, before you go on to lead the Hungry Wolf Knights on the front lines against Zeref. I didn't mention it before since I wasn't sure exactly when you joined; obviously history has rewrote itself, and weaved your joining of the guild into the new present day created by our passage through time. It's good to see you again; I'm Will, Erza's son."

"It's good to have you in the guild, so long as you promise to uphold our rules. Mira, even if you aren't convinced, I will uphold Master Makarov's teachings and give her a second chance, as he did with you, Juvia," Erza said, turning to face the water mage.

"Um… yes," Juvia began at last. "This is Jay, and these are the twins, Rin and Sylvia. They are mine and… mine and Gray-sama's children!" She said adamantly at last. "Oh, and Mira, this is your daughter, Ellie," gesturing to the girl. The so-called demon queen was now hiding behind Sylvia, despite being taller than her, wearing a shy expression on her face.

"There's no need to be shy, Ellie!" Mira said happily. "In fact, I was kind of hoping for a child or two, although if your father is who I think he is, we won't be able to keep our relationship a secret much longer!" She giggled.

Erza looked surprised. "Mira, you're seeing someone?"

"Yes, she is, and it's me," another voice came from the door.

"LAXUS?!" Juvia and Erza both exclaimed. The children just smiled; it was no secret to them.

"Hi daddy! I heard you were pretty strong back in the good old days, so how about you face me right now!"

"Oh, a feisty one. Sure, we can keep her. But if you want me to fight you… we'd better go outside. Let's go, Mira!" Laxus said, before the three left together. Erza sighed. For a moment there, she had expected Laxus to act like a responsible parent, although it was evident that wasn't happening any time soon.

Cosmos smiled. "My, my, they are a rowdy bunch! The love they have for one another is just beautiful, though!"

Erza then remembered something important. "Oh yes!" she exclaimed. "About Gray, I believe his train is due back around now, from the job he took today. I take it you'll want to speak to him alone, Juvia? If you hurry, I'm sure you can catch him!"

Juvia needed no more prompting, and sped out of the guild hall with a brief goodbye to her kids and thanks to Cosmos. With that, Will went to catch up with his old friends, and Cosmos went over to get to know the revered Erza. _She's not nearly as scary as I was told,_ she thought to herself. If only she knew the half of it.

Juvia had made her way back to the train station and made herself presentable by the time Gray's train from Hargeon pulled in. He was the only one to exit the train at such a late hour, and as the train pulled away, he noticed the water mage standing on the platform, ready to meet him. He steeled himself, ready for her crazy-stalker mode, but noticed something different in her face as he approached her. She turned to face him wordlessly, and he was able to witness the deep-seated contentedness in her eyes before she finally spoke.

"Gray-sama my darling, I have some… excellent news for us." The way she paused alerted him to her apprehension, and so he only nodded, allowing her to go on. "On my most recent outing I was able to… that is to say; I chanced upon… oh, I don't know how to word this! I'll just have to be bold for once! We have kids, Gray! In the future, we have three beautiful children and… even (sniff) if you don't… (sniff) love me now, please don't say that it is never to be mutual!" The poor girl was on the verge of tears, unable to hide her overbearing fear of rejection.

"Juvia, I… Please don't cry!" he said hastily. The ice wizard paused. What was he to say? Did he love her? The answer was staring him in the face, radiating from her beautiful ocean-blue eyes. "I suppose," he began, "that I don't _hate_ the idea of us being together. I suppose… since we have kids, it would only be right to… you know, address that?" he finished in a question at last, all hot under the collar for the first time in his life.

Juvia smiled as smile that outshined any smile that she had experienced before. She took one step forward, then another, putting one foot in front of another before she was inches away from him, able to feel his icy breath on her face. Leaning upwards with love in her eyes, she stole his first kiss just as he had stolen her heart all those years ago. For once he didn't push away, and they embraced in the moonlight as if they had been doing so for years. They were ice and water, finally ready to unite as one.

 _Treasure this girl. Don't push her away._ Gray thought he heard the voice of his old master, Ur, in his mind as he kissed the water mage. He wasn't sure why, but he didn't think he had ever been happier.

* * *

Meanwhile, somewhere across the country in the south-eastern mountains, a figure stumbled slowly through the thick mountainous forest, his tattooed arm clutched to his chest and stained deathly red. His cat-like ears flopped in his now matted yellow hair, and his tail looked ready to fall off. His clothes were near shredded, and his vision was fading. The last thing he felt was anger, anger at himself, anger at his former comrades and angry at _him._ He swore in his last breaths that if he somehow survived, that person would die by his hand. Eventually, when his feet could carry him no longer, he collapsed, catching a glimpse of a figure in the moonlight through the trees, running towards him.

The new figure, a girl of about 15, stopped next to him, standing under a shaft of gorgeous moonlight. Her hair was a verdant green and adorned with flowers, and her face was perfect and unscarred. She wore a white cloak over a green top and pair of trousers, and a flower-shaped locket hung from her neck. Perhaps her most noticeable feature, however, were the pure white wings sprouting from her back, radiating a magical glow.

"Heal!" the girl shouted whilst holding her hands out before her, praying that her magic would be enough. She knew well enough who the man before her was, but was not about to give up on anyone who needed help. Perhaps he could change, and realise the error in is ways before it killed him. The girl didn't think it would be impossible; after all, her mother had been part of a dark guild once.

"Please! Wake up! Come on, you can pull through! Just hear me, please!" She allowed her voice to rise in volume in an attempt to rouse him, even though she was all too aware of the wild things inhabiting the forest. After five excruciatingly long minutes, the girl was just about to give up when he stirred, opening up his golden eyes once again.

"What? But how? I was… a goner…" the man said, seemingly a little disorientated despite only being out for a few minutes.

"Hi there, you need to take it easy whilst I heal you; you were hurt pretty bad you know," smiling to hopefully lighten the mood as she sealed the gash along his middle. "My name is Melody, what's yours?" she asked, already knowing the answer but wanting to keep him conscious by conversing. The man looked away into the darkness, obviously unwilling to say. The girl chose to just go ahead and say it. "Zeref isn't being too kind to you these days, is he?" The man widened his eyes. How could she know of his origins? Had she been part of Fairy Tail when it happened? No, he never forgot a face, especially that of an enemy. He opened his mouth to speak, but only blood came out this time.

"Fancy a change of pace? A life in the light is not so bad when you give it a try you know." She smiled as he reacted in surprise at her words. "Relax; I'm not asking you to join a guild or anything, I just want you to… rethink some things. Mother told me just before the war to never give up on my own or another's life, as she nearly did once. Humans are pretty great considering how weak you once thought them, huh. Compassion, love, camaraderie, hope. All emotions that are felt in the human heart that unless unlocked by another, will stay sealed forever inside of yours.

"Thank you…" the man said in between spluttering. It was hardly a pretty sight, but she giggled anyway. She gave him a kiss on the forehead then went back to healing the gash. Jackal smiled inwardly in a way that he'd never done so before. Maybe there was warmth to be found in his world of darkness, after all.

* * *

 **I really loved writing that chapter, also, introducing Melody! I tried to drop enough hints, but if you didn't get it, she's the daughter of Meredy; the father still remains to be seen, though! On another note, I was wondering if anyone could suggest a magic to be used by the younger son of Sting and Yukino. (The older one is a dragon slayer of a to-be-announced element)I planned out the character himself but don't know what magic to give him yet, so suggestions are welcome! See you next time! (-;**


	8. Void Magic

**I can't believe it's chapter 8 already, thanks so much if you've read all of it so far! Hope you enjoy this one! (-;**

 **Chapter 8 – Void Magic**

* * *

The next day brought nothing but chaos to the guild, with both the arrivals of five new members and the reveal of the three newest relationships. Juvia received many congratulations from the ladies of the guild, whereas Gray got nothing but "about time" and "finally" from pretty much everyone around.

"The ice devil slayer finally becomes a real man!" Elfman exclaimed to no one in particular. Mira and Laxus's relationship was somewhat overshadowed by all of this, but Ellie was well received all the same, as were Cosmos and the children of Gray and Juvia.

When Lucy and Natsu entered the guild hand in hand, all of the previous commotion died down and silence fell upon the room. The two said nothing; they just smiled as Lucy held up her hand adorned with her new ring. A collective gasp arose and with a sudden tremendous cacophony of questions and congratulations, the guild descended on the couple and quickly overwhelmed them in the crowd. Katy looked on with a joyous grin from her table where she was sitting with Jay; they had been very close in the future and told each other pretty much everything. They heard the various shouts of all of Fairy Tail's members erupting from the crowd, making them proud to be a part of this amazing family and feel lucky to have another chance to stop the cataclysm that ended it all.

"Congratulations Natsu, never knew you had it in you!"

"Let's get this over with, I need another drink!"

"Oh wow Lu, you finally got him!"

"Yes! My love rival has now been forever banished from my Gray-sama's side!"

"You're a real man now!"

Then suddenly, a shout came from the back of the guild. "Everyone be quiet, now!" shouted Erza. "Jellal has some very important information for us, so you need to settle down, unless you wish for me to exert my authority in a more aggressive manner!" Everyone quietened at that, returning to their seats like an obedient class to hear what they had to say. Will stood behind her, looking worried, whilst Jellal looked serious as always.

"Yes, thank you Erza," Jellal said. She smiled, stepping back to allow him to speak. "As you may already know, there are thirty-three members in the Fairy Tail that Will and his friends come from. Strangely, after analysing the magical signals left over by the time-travel magic, we can confirm that there were in fact forty time travellers in total, making for at least seven unknowns, perhaps more if not all Fairy Tail members travelled back. Unfortunately, after thinking over it, Will has surmised who six of these might be, and it's not good news at all."

"Yes, thank you father," Will said, stepping forward. "During the cataclysm, Zeref creates six half-human, half-demon beings to aid in his conquest. They all have incredible magic power, as all of them are users of void magic, which was thought to only be a myth until then. One of them uses the Void of Distortion, and after culminating enough magical power, a time travel spell using this magic would be feasible. The only thing I don't understand is why the members of Fairy Tail were sent back, or who this mystery 40th person is."

Ellie, Katy, Jay and the twins all looked at each other nervously, obviously aware of who the void children were. The rest of the guild looked similarly worried; even though they hadn't a clue who these people were, the mere mention of them seemed to spread fear throughout the room.

Will continued after they quietened down again, helped by Erza's fierce glare. "The void children were, or rather, will be sent to destroy the guild about two years after the cataclysm, at which point a lot of the people here will have left for the front lines. We won just barely, but bear in mind this was a thirty-three against six battle, and all of them survived to fight again, not that we ever saw them again. I can only assume they went to help their master fend off the light forces, seeing them as a greater threat than us."

"So what were these people like? 'Cause I totally want to throw down with them if they're as strong as you say," Natsu shouted exuberantly.

"Natsu, please!" Lucy scolded, and he quietened down, muttering something inaudible.

"They are immeasurably strong wizards, far stronger than any of the Baram Alliance guilds," Jay said loudly before things got out of hand, seeing his father looking confrontationally at the fire dragon slayer. "First there is Andromeda, the one whom we think could pull of a time-travel spell. Her Void of Distortion allows her to control space, much like the wizard Minerva's Territory, only it's much more powerful than that. If she could rip into the temporal dimension, she could supposedly throw us all back in time, although as to why, I am unsure."

"Then there's her partner, Perseus," Katy continued. "I fought him and his Void of Calamity myself, and had to use the full power of my dragon force to beat him. His magic isn't mindlessly destructive; instead it's calculated and cruel, eradicating only what he sees fit from existence."

"I didn't know you were a dragon slayer," Lucy spoke up.

"Yes, although I don't wield fire. I am the celestial dragon slayer, a power which was given to me when I entered the Celestial Spirit World for the first time with you, mother. The king there said I had great potential, and therefore gifted me with a great magic power."

"Some people have all the luck!" Levy said indignantly. "I' stuck being so puny!"

"Aww, feeling inferior shrimp?" said Gajeel condescendingly, from across the table where she sat.

"Anyway, moving on," began Ellie. "I myself fought Eridani, a woman with a power called the Void of Creation. She was able to control the elements and weave magic spells that had never been used before in a heartbeat. My sister, Nova, also fought a man named Delta, who was able to channel his emotions into pure magical energy, and wield it most dangerously. She told me that he used an energy sword that cut through our friend Diana's impregnable diamond-make shield. It sounded quiet atrocious."

"And finally we have the last two, which are probably the worst, if you can even get any worse than what we have already described," said Will. The wizard Persephone used the Void of Origin, which allowed her to bring to life any creature she could imagine, and unfortunately for us, her imagination was quiet vivid. She brought to life an actual dragon, and it wasn't like a fake; it was the real thing, and it almost desecrated us. We only managed to defeat it by giving all our magic to Drake, our strongest dragon slayer, so he could blast it with his most powerful attack."

By this point, most of the crowd looked terrified and eager to get away; they knew just how powerful dragons could be having seen them up close and personally. But Will was not finished, unfortunately for them.

"The final member we didn't even manage to defeat, he's that strong. He retreated upon the fall of his friends, and we never saw of him again. His name was, or rather is, Galaxia, user of the Void of Light. His illusions are unbreakable, and so he was able to make short work of the wizards who went to take him down. I think he uses some kind of mind-control magic to make it impossible to break through the illusions, allowing him to hit us with thousands of light attacks whilst we were left attacking a projection. Even our wide range spells didn't find a trace of where he actually was, hiding behind the illusion, which makes me think he projected them from a long way off."

"Yes, I know," said Jay regrettably. "My rain magic would have alerted me to his presence, but he was nowhere to be found, unless he was underground or something."

"What I want to know," began Erza, "is where they are now, assuming they're here at all." Mutterings began to spread across the room, quickly growing in volume to a cacophonous panic.

"That's enough!" shouted Jellal unexpectedly. "You may be afraid, but you are Fairy Tail wizards, and if they attack now, we'll not only have our strength but also that of our future children."

"So you won't want our help then?" came a voice from the now open doors. In it stood the other members of Crime Sorciere, all of whom were now well acquainted with Fairy Tail, albeit under the radar of the Magic Council.

"Meredy? I thought I told you to wait in the forest?"

"You did, but we got bored, naturally. Did you really expect me to wait in that stink place for three days, Jellal?!" said Solano incredulously. "We brought you a present, as well." She turned around. "Come out and see your friends, darling." Jellal was surprised to hear such a motherly tone in the once sadistic woman's voice, but when her recipient walked out, he understood why.

The girl of about thirteen years of age was clinging to Macbeth's hand, obviously nervous. She wore a beautiful white dress and a halo floated above her head of gorgeous white locks. The dress was open at the back to allow for her two similarly white wings, which made her truly look like an angel to the onlookers.

"Daddy, you introduce me, I don't like attention…" the girl said in a quiet voice that was still audible thanks to the guild's silence.

"Right, okay then dear. This is Emm, everyone, and I apologise for her shyness. She's a child of the future, and from what I've heard, you were looking for those. She may not look like much, but she's as strong as any of us," Macbeth said, causing the girl to blush and hide once again.

It was Ellie who broke the silence, shouting Emm's name and running over to hug the embarrassed girl. This sent the guild into party mode once again; it appeared to Will that the arrival of their friend and the other guild had served to embolden the legendary spirit of Fairy Tail; he chuckled at this, thinking them to be crazy but loving them all the same. A cheer rose and rose higher from the crowd, with a vow to crush Zeref and anyone else who would oppose the strongest guild in the country.

In the back of Will's mind, a hidden voice scolded him for lying to such wonderful people, but he told the voice in his head that it had to be done. He still remembered the moment vividly, when the great illusionist bowed his head to him and begged for death.

* * *

 **And I leave you with that cliff-hanger of sorts! Sorry this wasn't up yesterday, but now school's starting again so I might not upload every day; I'll try though, since I love writing this! (-;**


	9. Demons and Flowers

**Starting now, the chapters will be longer but more infrequent; hope that's okay. Hope you enjoy this one! (-;**

 **Chapter 9 – Demons and Flowers**

* * *

Cosmos marvelled at how quickly the guild could turn an atmosphere of foreboding into one of hope and camaraderie. _Their guild, no, our guild is truly the greatest force of both magic and heart I have ever seen,_ mused the plant mage. After Crime Sorciere and Emm were welcomed inside, the noise began to die down again, much to her relief. With great power and friendship comes a lot of noise, it seemed.

She was walking over to Juvia, one of the few people she knew thus far, when she felt it. It was faint, but it was calling to her, and it seemed that no one else, not even the dragon slayers, could pick up on it. Looking around frantically, she eventually pinpointed the faint noise's unlikely source. Atop the oak windowsill in the corner of the guild hall stood a beautiful red rose that she was sure hadn't been there before. As she walked over to it, she realised that it was growing out of the wood itself, and what's more, it was a rose unlike any she had ever seen. Upon closer inspection, one would see the tiny magic circle at the base of each blood-red flower; magic circles very similar to her own.

Almost unconsciously, she reached out to touch one of its petals, and the voice immediately intensified in volume in her head. She gasped, unready for the surprise. The sound was loud but unclear, and making out words was difficult.

"I finally got through to you!" said the intensely loud yet static-laden voice. "Please, you must help! A horde of demons is attacking Oshibana, and I don't think we'll hold out much longer!" My name is…" and the voice dissolved into static. Cosmos reared back from the plant as it shrivelled and died before her, disintegrating until there was nothing left. Her eyes widened as she took in what the voice had said, and the lack of time they had to save Oshibana.

She ran over to where Erza was discussing something with Will at the center table, near to where Nab stared blankly at the job board most of the time. "Erza!" she yelled, clearly in distress.

"What is it, Cosmos? A problem?"

"There was a rose on the windowsill, and it talked to me! I know it sounds crazy, but it did, speaking the voice of someone fighting demons in Oshibana!"

Will rose from his seat abruptly, alert in an instant. "I know who it was, and if he of all people stoops to asking for help, then we have a situation!"

Erza stood up as well, calling the guild to attention immediately. "Everyone, we have a crisis in Oshibana! Juvia, Gray and Jay, take Cosmos with you and head straight there on the train. Happy, take Natsu and head to Clover to check if everything is alright there. Cosmos, check each destination along the way and rid them of any demons before the final stop. That will be all. Now go!"

With that, all those tasked with dealing with the SOS left, and the guild retuned to its normal chit-chat, albeit somewhat quieter than before; the crisis seemed to remind them of the potentially massive threat they faced. Erza herself was on edge; she had never heard of demons attacking such a central town for no reason. She could only pray that Tartaros had nothing to do with it.

* * *

Melody awoke to an annoying prodding at her shoulder. At first the green-haired girl ignored it, but much to her annoyance, it persisted, and she was forced to open her sleep-veiled eyes.

"Mmmph" she mumbled inaudibly, opening her eyes to see the perpetrator of the prodding. She gasped awake, pushing her body frantically away from him, recognising him as a deadly demon. It was then when it hit her; she had healed the man the night before without thinking about the potential consequences, then fallen asleep beside him without fear of, you know, blowing up. She mentally face-palmed. This was a sticky situation, to say the least.

"Morning, sleepyhead," he said unexpectedly tamely.

"Umm… morning?" She had meant to sound strong but it ended up coming out as a question, and a tentative one at that. "Please don't kill me!" she squeaked unintentionally; her fear of him was obvious to the demon, and he smirked.

"Don't worry, squirt. I ain't gonna hurt you… yet!" He cackled as she cowered at the last part, his sadistic side still alive, just buried under all of his hardships over the past two years. "No, but seriously, thanks for saving me. I would've been a goner back there, but now I feel as good as new! And as for what you said… I felt it, not gonna lie. The warmth of another. It was… nice."

She went from being scared to being confused. She never thought she would get through to him so easily; after all, it was all just stuff she said caught up in the emotion of the moment, after thinking of her mother. Melody was a very over-dramatic and somewhat bipolar person, a fact about herself that she both loved and hated, for even that depended on her mood. Heaven forbid even Will cross her when she got mad; for someone without any attacking magic, she sure could throw a punch!

"Oh… is that so?" she said weakly after much mental deliberation.

"Look, I'm not saying I'm any less fierce than before… but what Zeref told me struck a nerve. He told me I was worthless, having been defeated twice by the same guild. He tortured me, or rather, his minions did, the very demons that I once had power over. I finally escaped, but I've been pursued ever since. I've been running for a year now, and I saw many guilds along the way. I think… that's what a guild should be, you know. Not the dog-eat-dog system we held in place."

"You're absolutely right!" Melody said boisterously, her confidence regained in an instant. The she paused. Was it right to tell him which guild she came from, considering things?

"I know who you are, by the way. For God's sake, your guild mark is on your hand!" he cackled, seemingly not angry at all for some reason.

The girl blushed, hiding her hand. "I'm sorry, I'm sure you must hate them a fair bit…"

He sighed. "I did at first, but I suppose it just sort of wore off after a while, and turned into something more like jealousy, like I wanted what you guys all had. Not that I remember you from the fight. You new?"

"No, it's not like that. You probably won't believe me, but I'm actually from the future, a child that is yet to be born. I awoke in this forest a few days ago, and was walking towards my guild when I saw you collapsed there."

"I see," he said, completely unfazed by the shocking revelation. "It's pathetic, how I was so helpless. The demons ambushed me, shot me with cursed bullets that blocked my own curse power. I got away, but just barely. I suppose they thought I would die from blood loss, and didn't bother to follow. Heck, if you hadn't turned up, that's exactly what would have happened!"

"So that means you're in my debt, is that what you're saying?" she asked, an evil grin spreading over her face. She didn't give him time to reply. "In which case, you're coming with me to Fairy Tail. We're stopping Zeref together."

"WHAT?! Do you have ash for brains, squirt? They'll kill me!"

"I know my guild, and believe me, it's all water under the bridge with them! In the future, their guildmaster marries one of their most fearsome foes of all time; I doubt they'll mind you, fuzz-face!" With this, she laughed, proud of her nickname for him. "If anything, they'll be happy to have another member to face off against the ultimate threat!"

"Well I for one am for the idea," said a new voice from the bushes. The pair gasped as the Goddess of the Chill Moon, Sayla, stepped out in to the clearing. Behind her walked a sixteen year old boy dressed in a black cape and dark blue robes, and sporting a wild hairdo in his similarly black hair.

Jackal remained in shock from his former comrade's appearance, but Melody acted immediately upon sight of the boy. "Mercury!" she shouted gleefully, throwing her arms around him. He responded warmly, hugging her back and smiling innocently despite his somewhat macabre appearance.

"It's good to see you again, Melody. I see you found a demon as well, although I never thought that he of all people could be tamed. Perhaps fate has designs for him yet."

"Jackal, I must apologise for not finding you sooner. It is just that I wished to take my own path after I escaped Zeref's torture chambers."

"Wait… you were there too?!" the explosion demon asked at last.

"Yes, although not for long. He held me in a cage meant for a demon, but this was a mistake, for the only remaining book I had left in my possession was one of humans and their magic. I was able to overpower the guards with the spells taught in that book after practising them in my hours of solitude. I chose my own fate for once; I am no longer the woman who blindly follows Kyouka out of admiration for her, nor am I a follower of Zeref anymore. After seeing the love that the Fairy Tail wizards had for one another, I knew in my heart that I was heading down the wrong path. If it is now within our power to help them end our former master, then I shall gladly align with the heroes of this story."

Jackal was dumbfounded. Was this truly the demon that had once not even shown remorse after destroying their guild hall?

"So, Jackal was it? Are you in?" asked Mercury. Jackal had not noticed him walking up to him with Melody amidst Sayla's speech. "I suppose I should introduce myself. My name is Mercury, eldest son of Macbeth and Solano, who were once with the Oracion Seis. I saved Sayla from some demons after waking up in your time period a few days ago. I'm also from the future; I take it Melody has already explained that." Jackal nodded unsure of what to say. Mercury continued. "It seems she already had an interest in thwarting the Black Wizard, and accepted my offer for her to join Fairy Tail after I assured her that I wouldn't let harm come to her. I may not look it, but I'm actually one of the strongest Fairy Tail has ever seen. Sayla and I have had no trouble at all with the demon groups that came after us in the days following our initial meeting."

All three of them looked expectantly at Jackal, who foolishly hadn't gotten up and was therefore at a serious height disadvantage. "You know I'll blame you if I get hurt… but yeah, I'm in," he said reluctantly, blushing when Melody grinned with joy.

Sayla smirked. If anyone could force the evil out of him, it was that girl. "Shall we be off, then?" she heard Mercury ask.

"Let's go! No one can stop us if we have two kick-ass demons on our side!" Melody shouted, her larger personality showing. The demons sighed, but not unhappily. Jackal got up, now free of any injuries thanks to Melody's magic, and the team headed north towards Magnolia.

* * *

Meanwhile, Cosmos and the others had reached Oshibana without a single demon sighting thus far. They had talked to the train driver and he said that he'd let them out at the station there despite their original plan to skip it thanks to the crisis. When they arrived, they hopped off the train and ran straight for the town center, hearing it depart once more behind them.

It was Gray who first spotted them. "Look there!" he shouted, and we all cast our eyes to the street before us. Shadowy humanoid demons were running amok through the empty streets attacking everything in sight.

"Vines!" Cosmos shouted, and multiple thorny green vines shot from the ground around her, striking and disintegrating several enemies at once. She looked around to see her comrades firing off powerful attacks of ice and water, destroying the remainder of the foes in sight. Without a word, they ran once again to the center of town, and upon their arrival, they say a terrible scene.

Half of the buildings had been reduced to rubble, and more of the demons swarmed over everything, creating a field of mindless destruction. Some of them were even winged and others resembled various different beasts, much more animalistic than the others. At the center of it all, two wizards fought a dragon made entirely from evil purple shadows, towering above them and making them look tiny in comparison. It was easily as tall as the guild hall, and boasted a roar that shook the very earth.

The Fairy Tail team ran towards the boys at its feet, who were struggling in vain to fend off the colossal creature. One wore a burgundy and gold robe atop a white shirt and red trousers and had brown and gold hair swept to the side, making him look almost like a prince. He bore a scythe that looked to be made of tree roots, and was fighting both with it and by calling forth vicious plant magic from the ground.

His brother wore simple white clothing and had golden blonde hair that was accentuated by the glow that emanated from his body. The gentle waves of light upon closer inspection were formed of thousands of tiny golden orbs that reminded Cosmos of fireflies in the summer. She of course thought they were beautiful, but this time, they actually were, floating gently around him and effortlessly blocking the beast's attacks. The wave of light swept over any demon which got close to him, and he overall seemed a lot more in control of the situation than his brother, who fought furiously.

"We're here to help you!" Cosmos shouted, and the brown-haired boy's eyes lit up when they saw her.

"Water Slicer!" Juvia and Jay unleashed their attack in unison, hitting the dragon's legs and causing it to collapse on the ground. As it fell, Cosmos called forth a wall of vines and Gray shot an Icemake Cannon at the fiend, knocking it down once again as it attempted to rise.

"I call from the heavens the great power of light! Return all evil before me to your everlasting gaze! Astral Beacon!" The blonde haired boy, having said the incantation, stood back as a beam of light shot from the sky through the heart of the monster, ending it for good. All of the other minor demons vanished upon its defeat, and thus, victory was theirs.

"Thanks for your help guys, we really needed it. Those things were created by Zeref to spread destruction, and were frankly stronger than I thought. I take it you got my brother's message, Cosmos?"

She nodded. Jay then spoke up. "Is it really okay, your brother being here? I saw him struggling in that battle…"

"Oh crap!" the blonde turned around to see his comrade falling, and rushed to catch him as he fainted. "Cosmos, you can save him! Please, make one of your plants eat him, I promise it's the only way!"

She hesitated, then nodded, casting the spell. The boy was engulfed in the carnivorous plant, causing Gray and Juvia to worry. "Will he be alright?" the ice wizard asked worriedly.

"Oh, of course, you don't know who we are. His name is Thorn, and he uses plant magic not only to attack but also to survive. He can't last long in an urban area like this, especially when fighting, and yet he insisted he accompany me to destroy the demons when we heard about it this morning. My name is Apollo, and I'm his brother. We're both children of the future, if you hadn't guessed."

"And now comes the fun part," Jay said sarcastically. When his parents looked at him quizzically, he explained. "We get to carry the plant out into the forest so that this doesn't happen again. What's more, we won't be able to take the train back, so we have a hell of a walk ahead of us."

Their faces all fell, and Gray glared at the plant. "Let's get moving, then. Come on, we can all lift it."

"Yes, Gray-sama!" Juvia eagerly took up the plant, with Jay and Apollo on the other side of it. Cosmos couldn't lift the plant and keep it alive with her magic, so she led the group and helped them navigate the crowd as people began to trickle back into the city from the evacuation point, now that the demons had gone.

"You know," Jay said as they carried the surprisingly heavy cargo, "Thorn is far stronger than me or even Will; he just wasn't in his element today."

"I know," Apollo began, "For once I actually showed him up today. I can barely believe it!"

Juvia decided to ask the question on her mind. "So boys, are you Cosmos's children? And who's the father?"

They stopped dead in their tracks, looking awkward. "For one thing," Apollo began awkwardly, "she's not our mother, so you can relax Cosmos." The plant mage breathed an audible sigh of relief. "She was Thorn's mentor, though. He was born with heart problems, so she taught him a type of plant magic that would keep him alive as long as he stayed around them. The plants that keep him alive have to be natural, though; they can't be ones he summons himself. Our real parents are Freed and… Cana."

"What?! Since when were they a thing?!" Gray blurted out incredulously.

Jay smirked. "I think you'll find that they're very much a thing right now, and have been for some time. You just never noticed. The reason for Apollo's embarrassment is the fact that he claims to use magic of light and righteousness, but what he is _really_ is the result of a drunken accident!" the storm demon slayer laughed as poor Apollo blushed, his secret revealed. Cosmos laughed along with them, already feeling as if she had been part of this family for years.

* * *

 **What do you think? Reviews are always appreciated! See you next time!(-;**


	10. Venom

**Long time no see! As I said before, uploads will be further apart from now on, but I hope you still enjoy!**

 **Chapter 10 – Venom**

* * *

After they had been going for a while in the forest, Thorn finally spoke up. It was the first time any of them had heard him speak, since he had been recharging his magic energy using the surrounding nature until now.

"So am I to believe that several other future Fairy Tail members have been found?" he inquired in a somewhat haughty, upper-class tone.

"Yep, that's right," said Jay, cheerful to see that his friend had recovered enough to converse. "We've seen Will, Rin, Sylvia, Katy, Ellie, myself and you two so far, and we have already established who we think returned from the future."

"Oh yes?" Apollo asked, having recovered from their teasing earlier.

"There's the thirty-three wizards in our Fairy Tail, one unknown and, unfortunately, the six void children; or at least, that's what we think. It's all speculation at the moment."

"I see," Thorn said distastefully. "Well, I have no doubt that we will be able to defeat them as long as we gain the assistance of this time period's Fairy Tail. I know they won't be as strong as the ones we know who survived, but having my parents back me again will certainly be a welcome experience. Not that I would need any assistance if the enemy stopped showing up in cities all the time! It's quite annoying, I must say."

Gray sighed, not feeling willing or able to stop the pompous wizard's ranting. Juvia noticed his discomfort and went to hold his hand, which was met with acceptance and a smile after a moment of hesitation. Cosmos was left to walk alongside the couple and the chatting friends somewhat awkwardly, suddenly feeling out of place. That is, until she noticed the various exotic flowers growing in the trees to the sides of the path. All the others heard was a single yet loud "beautiful!" and she was gone. Thorn was used to this behaviour and simply waited for her return, but the others rushed off to find the side-tracked plant-mage, not realising how dense the forest was. It was not long before they all found themselves inescapably lost and separated from one another.

* * *

Her black heels clicked on the paved ground under her feet, the sound resonating in the empty courtyard that marked the entrance to the manor. Her white dress was flawless in its purity and her burgundy hair was equally perfect, tied back with a black ribbon. Her black eye shadow and red lipstick accentuated her flawless features even more, and as she drew up a hand to rap on the great oak doors of the house, her crimson fingernails glistened in the sunlight.

When the butler opened the door, he seemed surprised to see a woman of her obvious high stature alone in the middle of the day, but he recovered his composure expertly quickly.

"What brings a lady such as gorgeous as you to our manor?" he asked politely, albeit with flattery.

"My name is Lady Luna, and I have come to meet with your lordship to discuss a matter of great importance. He will not be expecting me, but I insist upon my seeing him. He shall not regret it."

The butler looked somewhat at a loss as to whether he should admit the woman, but eventually he gave in and let her step inside.

"Thank you. Please show me to his quarters."

The butler nodded wordlessly and guided the woman to his lord's chamber, where he sat reading in an ornate chair. He seemed flustered upon the sudden entrance of the noblewoman, who hadn't bothered to knock much to the butler's displeasure, though he didn't voice this.

"Leave us," the woman said to the butler, who promptly did as she asked, not wanting to anger a noble.

"What is the meaning of your rude interruption?! I don't care who you are, you can wait for me to finish my reading!" With that, the lord returned to reading his tome, obviously greatly engrossed.

"I'm sorry to interrupt, _your lordship,_ " she began with just a hint of sarcasm. "But I believe you will want to hear this. I heard of your little experiments." He stiffened, but did not look up. She continued. "Black magic isn't very fitting for a lord, wouldn't you say? Perhaps we can sort out an agreement over dinner tonight, to see whether or not I have to tell the council."

He slammed his book shut, and said with layers of sweetness, "Yes, well, I have no idea what you speak of, however I would be honoured to have you for tea, Lady… er…"

"Luna," she told him. "I shall see you at six, and I expect to be served with food worthy of my status, if you please." With that she left, leaving the lord to stomp his feet in annoyance. He had to come up with a plan to stop her revealing his secretin just a few hours. This situation had just become very complex indeed.

* * *

It was dinner and a dead silence hung over the table. The lord sat waiting, unsure of where any of his staff or his guest were. He had sent the butler to find them, but he had not returned and it had been nearly ten minutes. He smelt food coming from the kitchen, and went to investigate, grumbling along the way. He always knew dabbling in the dark arts of magic would come back to bite him, but the demon that had taught it to him had told of its unlimited potential, and so he had continued regardless of the risks. Perhaps one of these "risks" was what caused his staff's apparent disappearance, but who could say without investigation?

The spotless kitchen was deserted upon his entrance, but food was in the oven and there were half-chopped vegetables on the counter. Upon checking other rooms in his manor, he found a similar scene; half-done tasks littered the various chambers, but not a soul was to be found. In a panic, he rushed down into the cellar/dark magic laboratory.

All of the equipment had been knocked over, and various coloured liquids ran across the floor in a distorted, foul-smelling rainbow. What most drew the terrified the terrified lord's eyes was not this, however, for he was more distracted by the pile of bones in the center of the room. _Human_ bones. A woman in a white dress now stained with red stood atop this mini gruesome hillock staring down at his with contempt in her red eyes. Then he heard it.

HACK!

SLASH!

STAB!

The lord felt himself falling and losing consciousness, as well as feeling in his limbs. The pile of bones would be the last thing he ever saw; he was nothing but a skeleton by the time he contacted with the chemical-laden ground.

That night, a woman of noble status walked away from that manor house with not a speck of red on her dress, not a smear in her lipstick, no murderous glare in her eyes. But on her perfect ruby lips was a smile of victory.

They found the household's remains the next day, and put their deaths down to the traces of black magic found in the basement. It was a shock to many when it appeared in the papers the following day that the lord had been practising the dark arts, and for the council, it became yet another thorn in their side that they had to deal with. They wouldn't have guessed the real culprit, however. Lady Luna, the poison dragon slayer, left the town that same day, one more of her many objectives achieved.

 _It is up to me to save the future, and if I must kill innocent people to prevent the rise of the deadlords, then so be it. I am alone in this world; I cannot go back to them, they would never trust magic as vulgar as mine. I do this all for you, my dearest Thorn._

These words were left in her diary that night as she slept uneasily under the stars, gazing up at their celestial glory, free of all sins.

* * *

Jackal lay on his back on the cool, damp grass. Melody lay asleep to his right, whilst his other two companions snoozed on the opposite side of camp. He'd told them that he had enough strength to lay explosion traps surrounding the camp, thus eliminating the need for a lookout, but the power he was using now to keep them running was keeping him awake anyway. The stars glistened above him; they annoyed him, as he knew that he would never ascend to reach their ranks. He would sink back down to eternal torment upon his eventual demise, be that sooner or later. He still remembered the crying faces of those he brought anguish to in the Fairy Tail guild, and now they only brought sadness rather than contempt.

With great weariness in his arms, he drew himself into a sitting position, then eventually mustered the energy to stand. Sayla may think she could start again, and maybe she could; after all, she was more misguided than pure wicked as he was. No, there was no way he could go through with this. He had said yes to get revenge on Zeref, but now he realised that was just another face to add to his massive hit list. He didn't want to live for vengeance anymore, but oh how tantalising it was!

The demon sighed. No. This was for the best. He put one foot in front of another, breaking from a walk into a jog then into a run. Silvery tears glistened in his eyes, but he told himself that they'd pass, they always did. After a few minutes, he slowed up slightly, only to be bowled over from behind. He tried to launch an explosion, but found himself out of power. He hit the ground with a thud, and went to kick them off when he caught a glimpse of familiar light-green hair.

Jackal flipped over, annoyance now in his still-teary eyes. "I can't go with you, no matter what you say! I'm a monster, I could've even killed you just now if I didn't realise who you were! I don't deserve your second chance!" he shouted, tears now streaming down his face, shining in the moonlight.

But Melody did not say a word, nor did she look him in the eye. Bending down, she drew him into an embrace, and put her hand on the back of his head like her mother had done when she was upset. He couldn't speak; his mouth was sealed in a half-open state as his eyes widened and he looked at the stars once again, now in the girl's embrace. Slowly, he put his arms around her, and for the first time, hugged someone out of pure feeling alone, and not just to kill them with a well-placed spell.

"You don't have to be alone any more. Don't hide from your sins; they'll make you stronger if you just accept what you've done and move forward. Fairy Tail is the greatest place on earth, so don't give up on the chance to experience heaven. It's not up there amongst the stars, it's here, with us. We're your friends; I expect your first ones, at that. I know Sayla feels just as anxious and guilty as you, but she rises above it to survive. Some of us just need a little help, and what are friends for?"

Melody drew back to look into his teary eyes, and, almost without thinking, bestowed upon him his first kiss; it was only a light peck, but it was enough. The anger and despair disappeared in an instant, and was replaced by a smile, and then a light kiss back. Sayla and Mercury burst into the clearing at that point, clearly concerned for their missing friends. When they saw Jackal and Melody on the ground embracing under the starlight, they hung back, relieved that all was well.

Sayla turned away, somewhat flushed. It was true that she had thought of Mercury in a few… inappropriate fantasies, but to think that Jackal of all demons had beaten her to it at the partner game! It wasn't not like she hadn't hinted at her shadowy companion, though. He was just so clueless! She pumped her fist in the air, out of the sight of the others, obscured by shadow. She would not be defeated!

* * *

 **Hope you liked that! The majority of relationships of the original Fairy Tail members in this fanfic are the canonical ones, but I might try writing some more obscure pairings in another story sometime. See you next time! (-;**


	11. Takeover

**It feels like ages since I've uploaded! Hope you like his one! (-;**

 **Chapter 11 – Takeover**

* * *

Somewhere in the north of Fiore, was not right. People from villages all around were chained and forced to travel miles across the unforgiving highlands in a line that stretched to the horizon. Their enforcers were humanoid demons with red skin and many black tattoos. They carried lightning spears, and shocked anyone who stepped out of line, not that the chains made that possible. Those that got bored seemed to take great pleasure I socking people for no reason, and their screams echoed throughout the valleys.

Watching the scene under the cover of an invisibility enchantment were two wizards bearing the mark of Fairy Tail. The caster of the enchantment was a short girl with long blue hair tied in a ponytail, wearing shiny iron armour over her small frame. Her companion was a boy wearing a grey coat over blue clothes, and sporting short brown hair that went wild in the wind.

"Don't you think we should do something, Ernine?" the boy asked impatiently.

"We _are_ doing something, that being following them. We can't possibly save them all right now, so the best course of action is to find out where they're being led to. Demons are always under someone's control; their much like your magic, in that respect. Trust me, Kai, I want to save them just as much as you do, but for now, we have to be patient," she replied understandingly.

"Okay, but let's at least get moving. I'm not cut out for this cold," he said.

Still under the enchantment, they made their way over the hills, trailing the great train of people heading north. Eventually, after surmounting a particularly high hill, they saw their destination to be: a great castle that perched on the side of a cliff face. The villagers were led along a narrow path towards the entrance of the great granite structure.

Ernine cast a binocular enchantment, allowing the pair to zoom in on said entrance. It was to their shock that they saw none other than the demon Torafuzar standing at the gate, stalwart as always.

"This will be tougher than we thought," Kai noted gravely. "Perhaps we might see if we can find backup; I'm sure we're not the only future Fairy Tail members to travel back in time. Besides, there are always this time period's guilds, not that there are any nearby, but I might be able to contact one telepathically."

"By that point, people may well have died. I suspect that these people are either being sacrificed or turned into demons, and both outcomes involve the victim's demise," Ernine said with a hint of anger in her voice.

Just as she said it, she felt her enchantment dissipating in front of her eyes, causing her eyes to widen in fear. They turned to see a blue demon behind them, and immediately they could tell that he was a cut above the others. He wore a black robe and carried a vicious scythe, bearing a menacing grin on his face.

"Crap. Stay back, I'll handle him," Kai said quickly, to which his companion immediately complied. The demon laughed, but was soon to be in a world of pain as Kai began to cast his spell. "Takeover: Phoenix Soul," he said quietly and menacingly under a darkened brow. The demon's cackling died down as great fiery wings sprouted from the boy's back and his fists became aflame. He rose slowly as the demon warily drew its scythe, and after a moment of staring each other off, they were flying at each other.

Kai's fists blazed as he slammed into the dark weapon, sending the demon flying. It disappeared into the shadows and tried to attack from behind, but Kai responded with a kick attack based off a certain Fire Dragon's Talon. The demon dove once again, but this time was to be forced out by a glowing red enchantment cast by Ernine, her eyes blazing with battle fury. Kai rose to deal the final blow, blowing the demon to smithereens fore he even had a chance to realise what happened.

"We rock!" Ernine exclaimed, somewhat out of character. Kai smiled. The two had somewhat of a battle obsession, although they were also intelligent enough to know their limits, which is why they were reluctant to attack the castle. Ernine resembled Erza in many ways sometimes, despite not being related to her.

The pair celebrated had no time to celebrate their victory, though, and began to make their way towards the castle, in the hope to infiltrate it somehow.

The admittedly strange-looking group made up half of humans and half of demons had reached a problem. A gang of bandits had surrounded them in the forest, and the demons' curse powers were drained thanks to them no longer being powered by Tartaros, not to mention Melody couldn't even fight in the first place, being more of healer. Mercury stepped forward to take them, and to Jackal and Melody's surprise, so did Sayla.

"Um… have your powers not been dissipated?" Jackal asked in confusion.

Sayla replied unaffectedly: "My story now follows the path of light, and thus, I have taken the liberty of studying magic on my journey so far. It seems I have an affinity for it, as I was already able to wipe out a battalion in my prison with it." Jackal's eyes widened in amazement; surely she couldn't be that good already?! How was he ever going to catch up now?

"Now let's take them down!" shouted Mercury as the bandits let out a roar and attacked as one. Mercury held out his arm and several bolts of darkness shot out, downing half a dozen bandits in a second. Sayla's hands began to glow, and as she held them aloft, she shouted the name of her spell: "Sol!" The light exploded in a wave of energy, sending bandits flying left and right while not affecting her companions in the slightest. The leader had only just drawn his sword when she switched to another spell, surprising even Mercury with her speed. "Astra!" Sparkling blue shots flew from her fingers, exploding on impact with the leader, defeating him utterly.

As the dust cleared, three pairs of eyes fell on Sayla, who, oblivious to the attention, was brushing off her somewhat tattered dress. "How the hell did you do that?!" Jackal exclaimed, echoing the humans' thoughts.

"Do what?" she replied nonchalantly.

"You don't just do some crazy magic like that and then pass it off as nothing!"

"Oh yes, that. You see, the spell book that I learnt from was titled 'Awakening' and I believe it to contain some very powerful magic indeed that cannot be linked to any particular name; each spell is individual, which is why I love it so much. I only wish I had the insight to read it when we were fighting the humans."

It was at that point where they heard a gasp from the other side of the clearing, and four heads turned to see none other than Gajeel Redfox standing stock still amidst the unconscious bandits. Having never actually seen him before, Sayla went forward to explain, but he recognised the demons and moved to attack. Chaos ensued once again in that dense forest clearing.

* * *

 **Short but sweet; I felt I had to upload something since I haven't in so long because of exams and other otherworldly evils. After my exams are over (which is soon) I'll hopefully be able to upload a full-length chapter. Also, I hope at least someone got the game reference made in there! See you next time! (-;**


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